Saadeh C
Department of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Amarillo 79106, USA.
South Med J. 1998 Mar;91(3):220-5.
The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is a simple and inexpensive laboratory test. It is commonly used to assess the acute phase response.
A review of the recent literature was done to evaluate the role of the ESR and its importance in different clinical conditions both inflammatory and noninflammatory.
Despite the critical role cytokines have in inflammatory conditions, the ESR still maintains its important role in the diagnosis and follow-up of rheumatoid arthritis and temporal arteritis. Recently, ESR has been reported to be of clinical significance in sickle cell disease, osteomyelitis, and, surprisingly, in noninflammatory conditions such as stroke, coronary artery disease, and prostate cancer. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate measured by the Westergren method is marginally affected by age, race, and blood storage.
Despite its importance in many clinical conditions, ESR should be used only as a clinical guide to aid the diagnosis, management, and follow-up of these different clinical situations.
红细胞沉降率（ESR）是一项简单且成本低廉的实验室检查。它常用于评估急性期反应。
对近期文献进行综述，以评估ESR的作用及其在炎性和非炎性不同临床状况中的重要性。
尽管细胞因子在炎性状况中起关键作用，但ESR在类风湿关节炎和颞动脉炎的诊断及随访中仍发挥着重要作用。最近，有报道称ESR在镰状细胞病、骨髓炎中具有临床意义，令人惊讶的是，在诸如中风、冠状动脉疾病和前列腺癌等非炎性状况中也具有临床意义。采用魏氏法测定的红细胞沉降率受年龄、种族和血液储存的影响较小。
尽管ESR在许多临床状况中很重要，但它仅应用作临床指导，以辅助这些不同临床情况的诊断、管理和随访。
